Written in the Cards
by Zweeni
Summary: It was fated to happen. The sequence of cards was always the same, no matter how many times she drew. Now, stranded in a strange land, among strange people, her only means of survival is the tarot deck she woke up next to...
1. Prologue

**"My ears strain to hear a call back to me**

**But all I seem to hear is the calling of the sea..."**

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**Chapter One: The Fool's Journey**

"You need your rest." There was a gentle urgency in her mother's voice. "Lie back down, honey."

"The same..." She whispered, staring at the deck of cards in her hands.

The older woman frowned. _It's been like this... ever since the accident... _"You're still in the hospital, sweetie." She tried again. "Please don't sit up so often. Even the doctor said it's bad for you."

"I am fine." Sh spoke with an almost chilling certainty. But her mother, who knew her better than anybody else, could tell that behind the ice-cold facade, she was perturbed.

And despite that, her mother could still see the desperate urge to sleep beneath her eyelids. She was fighting it.

"The Moon."

She laid out a card that depicted the celestial body on the thick blanket that covered her lap.

"The Tower."

Another card joined the first. As she reached for the third, there was a prominent frown on her face; an unusual emotion for her. Her eyes fluttered half-close, and she struggled to keep them open.

"The Hanged Man."

Her mother couldn't help the slight shiver that went down her spine. An ominous feeling settled around the room, like there was an unseen evil that was silently watching over them. Maybe buying those tarot cards for her, ten years ago, had been a bad idea.

Calmly, she drew another card from the deck. She looked thoughtful.

"Honey...?"

"It's the same." She murmured, placing the third card down. "No matter how many times I draw, the sequence of cards is _always_ the same." She paused, then continued. "The Moon, the Tower, The Hanged Man and after that..."

Was it just her imagination or was her daughter acting strangely today? More than usual, that is.

The young girl had closed her eyes as she drew the last card.

"The Wheel of Fortune."

After what seemed like an eternity, her eyes opened again. But this time, it wasn't the smell of sickness and medicine that woke her.

It was the salty smell of the sea.

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**Review please. Even just a line of encouragement will do.**


	2. Important AN

**IMPORTANT A/N. PLEASE READ:**

I know I said I wasn't about to give up on this story, but sadly, it seems I have no choice. I'm up to my nose in work with University and I thought going on hiatus or updating less frequently would help, but as time goes by, it's starting to seem more and more impossible.

And it's not just me (although, it's _**mostly**_ me), it's the fandom too. I used to adore One Piece, but it just. Doesn't. END! The anime has extended into 600+ episodes and just thinking of writing that much scares me!

Recently, I've realized that I'm beginning to resent anime like that, which go on forever without any end in sight. Naruto, Bleach and One Piece are anime which I will probably never write for, unless it's short drabbles or one-shots or something…

But I'm not writing this author's note to rant about my anime tastes. It's to apologize to you guys, my ever faithful readers. To all 132 of you who have me on their favourites and the 140 who have me on alert and the 245 who were awesome enough to review, I am so, so sorry. I truly am. Even when I was on hiatus, I continued to receive reviews from you guys and that alone pushed me at least complete the current arc, if not go beyond that.

I wish I had the time and motivation to see this story through to the end. I didn't want to say I'm giving it up until I was sure I couldn't write another word of it, but that time has finally come.

Also, I apologize for removing the story, for all those who wished to re-read the 23 chapters which were published. I was going to delete it, but I didn't want to leave an important notice like this on my profile, where you guys may not see it. So I'm leaving only the prologue up for now.

It's a difficult decision to delete the chapters, especially since I don't have any backup of them, but having **WitC** looming over my head with all its incompleteness makes it difficult for me to start writing again, especially for those anime that have been completed (Death Note, for one, is something I _really_ want to write for).

So, I won't drag this out any longer. Ciao to all my faithful readers (and sorrysorrysorrysorry, I couldn't apologize enough). Writing WitC and getting to know you guys was **awesome **while it lasted!

I'm only dealing with one-shots right now, but _hopefully_, when I have a good plot going, I'll be back!

**- Zweeni**


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